The Rotten Fruits of Pope Francis: church schism, conservative rebellion, and approval of Iran nuke deal

“By their fruit you will recognize them.” -Matthew 7:16

Rotten Fruit #1: culture war within church hierarchy

His papacy is only 2½ years old, and already Pope Francis has provoked a raging culture war within the Catholic Church.

Anthony Faiola reports for The Washington Post, Sept. 7, 2015, that rather than stake out clear stances, Francis is more subtly, often implicitly, backing liberal church leaders who are pressing for radical change, while dramatically opening the parameters of the debate over how far reforms can go. Since then, liberals have tested the boundaries of their new freedom, with one Belgian bishop going as far as calling for the Catholic Church to formally recognize same-sex couples.

In more than a dozen interviews, including with seven senior church officials, insiders say the change wrought by Francis “has left the hierarchy more polarized over the direction of the church than at any point since the great papal reformers of the 1960s.”

There is “a growing sense of alarm” about Francis among the Catholic Church’s conservative clergy, who have launched “a conservative backlash” against “the liberal momentum building inside the church.”

The conservative rebellion is taking on many guises — in public comments; in the rising popularity of conservative Catholic Web sites promoting Francis dissenters; books and promotional materials backed by conservative clerics seeking to counter the liberal trend; and leaks to the news media, aimed at Vatican reformers.

While criticism of a sitting pope is not unusual — liberal bishops on occasion challenged Francis’s predecessor, Benedict XVI — what shocks many is just how public the criticism of Francis has become. Here are some examples:

Wisconsin-born Cardinal Raymond Burke who, in November 2014, was demoted by Francis from his position as Cardinal Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, recently told a French news crew that he would “resist” liberal changes, and called the church under Francis “a ship without a rudder.” Burke also seemed to caution Francis about the limits of his authority, saying, “One must be very attentive regarding the power of the pope. Papal power is not absolute. The pope does not have the power to change teaching [or] doctrine.”

A senior Vatican official said on the condition of anonymity that conservatives have been thrust unfairly into a position in which “defending the real teachings of the church makes you look like an enemy of the pope. We have a serious issue right now, a very alarming situation where Catholic priests and bishops are saying and doing things that are against what the church teaches, talking about same-sex unions, about Communion for those who are living in adultery. And yet the pope does nothing to silence them. So the inference is that this is what the pope wants.”

In an open letter to his diocese, Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence, R.I., wrote: “In trying to accommodate the needs of the age, as Pope Francis suggests, the Church risks the danger of losing its courageous, countercultural, prophetic voice, one that the world needs to hear.” Commenting on Francis’ call for dramatic action and a supranational new global authority on climate change, Pell told the Financial Times in July, “The church has got no mandate from the Lord to pronounce on scientific matters.”

In conservative circles, the word “confusion” also has become a euphemism for censuring the papacy without mentioning the pope. 500 Catholic priests in Britain drafted an open letter this year that cited “much confusion” in “Catholic moral teaching” following the bishops’ conference on the family last year in which Francis threw open the floodgates of debate, resulting in proposed language offering a new stance for divorced or gay Catholics. Although that language ultimately was watered down, it set up another showdown for next month, when senior church leaders will meet in a follow-up synod that observers predict will turn into another theological slugfest. Francis will have the final word on any changes next year.

Last year, five senior leaders, including Burke and Cardinal Carlo Caffarra of Bologna, Italy, drafted a “manifesto” against a possible policy change that would grant divorced and remarried Catholics the right to take Communion at Mass. In July, a DVD distributed to hundreds of dioceses in Europe and Australia, and backed by conservative Catholic clergy members, made the same point.

ROTTEN FRUIT #2: LEFT-WING GERMAN BISHOPS LEADING CHURCH TO A SCHISM

The Culture War within the church hierarchy may lead to a rupture.

Maike Hickson reports for LifeSiteNews, Sept. 8, 2015, that Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Mueller, the head of the Catholic Church’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), said German bishops are leading the Church to a schism.

According to the German newspaper Die Tagespost, Mueller criticized “a climate of the German claim to leadership for the Universal Church.” Many German bishops have declared that “life realities” must be taken into account as part of Church teaching and salvation. However, Mueller said the goal should not be “about adapting the Revelation to the world, but … about gaining the world for God.”

Mueller said that he is frequently asked why German bishops claim to be leaders of the Catholic Church — while flouting teachings on marriage and sexuality — despite overseeing dramatic reductions in church attendance, shrinking numbers of seminarians, and a drop in vocations to religious orders.

Mueller specifically identified allowing “remarried” Catholics to receive the Eucharist, as well as accepting a redefinition of marriage, as challenges to overcome. “We may not deceive the people, when it comes to the sacramentality of marriage, its indissolubility, its openness toward the child, and the fundamental complementarity of the two sexes,” he firmly stated. “Pastoral case has to keep in view the eternal salvation,” as opposed to a desire to be popular or accepted in the world.

Rotten Fruit #3: Vatican approves of iran deal

Jordan Schachtel reports for Breitbart that on Sept. 15, 2015, Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Vatican’s chief diplomat, released a statement officially welcoming the nuclear agreement between the P5+1 world powers (U.S., UK, China, France, Russia, Germany) and Iran, stating that the Holy See believes Tehran will reduce its nuclear capabilities in exchange for sanctions relief.

Moreover, in calling for a Middle East free of nuclear weapons, the Vatican also appeared to target Israel, given that it is the lone nuclear power in the region.

H/t Fr. Michael T. Barry, who had this comment about the Vatican’s approval of the Iran deal: “What? LSD in Vatican water supply?”

Francis will arrive in Washington, D.C., on September 22.

On Sept. 23, he will be welcomed to the White House by Obama, who, in a supreme “F-you” gesture to the Church, has invited to the meeting with Francis a freak-show of opponents of traditional Catholic teachings, including a pro-abortion nun, a transgender woman transvestite, the first openly-homosexual Episcopal bishop, and two “Catholic” homosexual activists.

I agree with Japoa above: The main thrust is Masonic (which is of the Illuminati). My main concern with this Pope is “everything” in that he inspires a real dread in me. I really do think he is the False Prophet. But in practical matters, I would like to know more on Walter Cardinal Kasper and his plans to allow divorced-and-remarried Catholics to receive Communion. Because this, I believe, is how we will lose the Mass. If a priest knows he must consecrate, while knowing his consecrated hosts will be received by people in sin, on a widespread scale, then the question arises, Is the consecration valid? This will cause the remaining faithful to lose faith in the Mass.
Again, I see a Judas Iscariot spirit at work in the Church. It’s been at work since John XXIII, and now it has taken off the mask.
I am hoping I live to see just one more good Pope in my lifetime (the first being Pius XII).

This is so diabolic. Most of my Catholic family members and friends are just sickened. Has anyone else read Malachi Martin’s book, THE KEYS OF THIS BLOOD? It’s a real telling expose. I loved Martin, wish he was still with us, but surely home in glory. Reposting this on exposingmodernmugwumps.com

Why would you put a cross in the middle of a Star of David ? 6 points of the star . 6 triangles in the star . 6 lines make up the star . Does that not tell you anything about the make up of that insignia ?

“… stating that the Holy See believes Tehran will reduce its nuclear capabilities in exchange for sanctions relief.” He must have missed Iran’s announcement of finding an “unexpected” amount of uranium reserve and the tweet the ayatollah issued with an anti-US war video.

Iran has discovered an unexpectedly high reserve of uranium and will soon begin extracting the radioactive element at a new mine, the head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation said on Saturday. The comments cast doubt on previous assessments from some Western analysts who said the country had a low supply and would sooner or later would need to import uranium, the raw material needed for its nuclear programme.

I am extremely confused about the communications of Pope Francis, both verbal and subtle communications. He stood up for the family, for marriage and Catholic doctrine when he was the Archbishop of Argentina, wherein the president of Argentina rejected him and his pro-life advocacy. His orthodoxy was clearly communicated to her.

I agree with the wonderful Cardinal Burke when asked the question as to what should we do now, and he said two important words, “Stay faithful!” That is what we Catholics must do: Stay faithful to our Catholic Faith and the doctrines. We continue to exist not because of us, or other factors, but because we have been given a divine guarantee: “Thou art Peter, and upon this Rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. . .”

Having studied so many of the numerous heresies that have affected the Catholic Church since its inception, it appears we may be in store for more of such heresies. God will help us. He knows what we need. Just like He gave us the great St. Robert Bellarmine in the tumultuous 16th century; He will continue to help us. We must bring all of this before Him in sincere prayer on a daily basis. STAY FAITHFUL!!!

Thank you for providing this extensive reference; thank God for wikipedia. Within this reference of wikipedia, it states in part in describing Bergoglio’s relationship with President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner: “The campaign to enact same-sex marriage legislation (Bill 2010) was a particularly tense period in their relations.” Bergoglio further stated in pertinent part describing this legislation, “it is a destructive proposal to God’s plan.” He further described this legislation as a war (against) of God.

My first response to you was in reaction to your portrayal of Bergoglio’s tense relationship with the Argentine government as due to his religious-doctrinal stance. That is simply not true. Bergoglio made himself the thorn in the side of the Argentine government by acting as the leader of the POLITICAL opposition — the complete opposite of the U.S.’s “separation of church and state”. From a March 14, 2013 Washington Post article, “Bergoglio challenged moral authority of Argentina’s elected leaders“:

Bergoglio, observers say, has not been shy about energetically taking on the president or her predecessor and late husband, Néstor Kirchner. “It was never a good relation,” said Oscar Aguad, a deputy in Argentina’s congress from the opposition Radical party. “There were scraps between Bergoglio and the Kirchner governments, to the point where Nestor Kirchner even said that Bergoglio was the head of the opposition.” …

Observers in Argentina said Bergoglio did not act in opposition to the Kirchners’ stated goal of reducing poverty; in fact, Bergoglio emerged during the peak of the Argentine economic crisis of 2000 as a fierce critic of globalization. Rather, he was simply not shy about exposing what some critics of the government call its mendacity in reporting economic data. The church waded into this thicket not with a direct attack but by issuing its own poverty figures showing that the number of poor people was much higher than the Kirchners asserted.

“When Bergoglio talked of extreme poverty, or of the kids who are among the army of drug addicts, the government felt it was under attack because they’re in charge of anti-narcotics efforts, social programs and health care,” said Oscar Raúl Aguad, a lawmaker who opposed the Kirchners’ programs.

Bergoglio also took to using his high-profile sermons on May 25, Argentina’s Revolution Day, to deliver critiques of the Peronist leaders, some of which were carefully worded but nonetheless angered the nation’s most influential power couple.

“Power is born of confidence, not with manipulation, intimidation or with arrogance,” Bergoglio said in 2006.

I was aware of Bergoglio’s opposition in many matters with regard to the Argentinian government and its officials. I specifically was commenting upon his views on same-sex marriage and the family, wherein his relationship with the president became particularly “tense,” the terminology used to describe this specific effect on the relationship.

You’ll have to forgive me for misunderstanding that you had included Bergoglio’s opposition on political matters when you originally wrote, “He stood up for the family, for marriage and Catholic doctrine when he was the Archbishop of Argentina, wherein the president of Argentina rejected him and his pro-life advocacy.”

My guess is that he is sabotaging the church so as to collapse or redefine the papacy. Considering his ‘welcome all’ attitude which is just really a quantity over quality in regards to the faithful.
I think is that he wants to be the final pope, because he will go into history and will be a point of reference in regards to the fall of the papacy.
Seems like he is turning catholicism into a unitarian type creed